Guidance

LSR: how to replace lost, stolen and recovered passports (accessible)

Updated 17 November 2022

Version 8.0

This guidance is for His Majesty’s Passport Office examiners dealing with applications to replace passports that have been reported lost or stolen and where the customer has found a passport, they previously reported lost or stolen.

About LSR: how to replace lost, stolen and recovered passports

This guidance is for His Majesty’s Passport Office operational staff it explains how to deal with:

• passport applications to replace a passport a customer has reported as lost or stolen
• a passport a customer had previously declared lost or stolen but has now found (known as a recovered passport)

Contacts

If you have any questions about the guidance and your line manager or senior caseworker cannot help you or you think that the guidance has factual errors then email Guidance & Quality, Operating Standards.

If you notice any formatting errors in this guidance (broken links, spelling mistakes and so on) or have any comments about the layout or navigability of the guidance then you can email Guidance & Quality, Operating Standards.

Publication

Below is information on when this version of the guidance was published:

• version 8.0
• published for Home Office staff on 27 September 2022

Changes from last version of this guidance

This guidance has been updated to reflect the change in our sovereign from Her Majesty Queen Elizabeth II to His Majesty King Charles III.

How to report a lost or stolen passport

This section tells His Majesty’s Passport Office staff how customers can report their passport as lost or stolen.

If a customer reports a passport as lost or stolen, we have a duty to cancel it as soon as possible to stop it from being used fraudulently. Customers can report their lost and stolen passports, by:

• going to the GOV.UK website
• reporting it to a consulate or embassy post (overseas)
• completing a paper notification form (known as an LS01)
• applying to replace the passport, giving the details of the loss (or theft) on the passport application

When to use a paper lost and stolen form (LS01)

We tell customers to report their lost and stolen passports on GOV.UK. In special cases, we will ask the customer to fill in a paper form (LS01). For example, if an LSR team examiner cannot progress an online report, they may ask the customer to fill in an LS01 form.

If, during the examination process you (the examiner) get an LS01 form as part of an application, you must:

• use the information on the form to create an LS record
• scan the form onto the record (after you have finished examining the application)

When we record data on the LSR database

The Lost, Stolen and Recovered database (LSR) holds information relating to lost, stolen and recovered passports. We share information daily with Interpol and United Kingdom government departments, such as Border Force, to:

• prevent and detect crime
• protect:
  • customers
  • their passports
  • the records we hold on passports

If a customer reports their passport as lost or stolen, we will cancel the passport on Main Index and make a record of the loss (LS record) on the LSR database. LS records are created by:

• the digital LSR (DLSR) reporting system, automatically creating an LS record
• Teleperformance (TP) creating an LS record from details the customer has entered on GOV.UK
• the LSR team creating and dealing with customer and trusted source notifications
• standard examiners creating an LS record from details the customer sent in a letter or email

Reporting a false declaration of loss or theft to the police

We will report notifications to the police, if someone has given:

• incorrect information
• a false declaration
• a forged consent signature

If you believe the declaration or report is false, you must ask the customer to put their concerns in writing.

You must also refer the case (and customer’s written confirmation) to the Counter Fraud team (CFT).

If CFT believes there are reasonable grounds to suspect an offence has been committed, they will:

• decide if they need to cancel the customer’s passport
• report the incident to the police (in line with Passing information to law enforcement agencies guidance)

The police will decide if they need to take legal action.

How to cancel a lost or stolen child passport

This section tells HM Passport Office examiners how to check they have the correct consent to cancel a child passport before they create a lost and stolen (LS) record and replace a child’s missing passport.

Cancelling a passport when a customer has reported it lost or stolen, protects the holder from identity theft and potential child trafficking or abduction.

When a parent reports a child passport as lost or stolen on GOV.UK, we will:

• cancel the passport
• do more investigation when we receive the replacement application

We must make sure the person reporting the problem is the correct person to report the child passport as lost or stolen. We will ask the customer questions, for example, if they:

• know where the child passport is
• have told other people with parental responsibility (PR)
  • if they have not, we will tell them to

We will cancel a passport if the person reporting it on GOV.UK:

• holds PR
• submitted the last application form and signed the declaration (if applicable)

When the LSR team will cancel a child passport

The Lost, stolen and recovered (LSR) team will deal with electronic notifications on GOV.UK. They will only cancel a child passport after:

• they have finished their checks
• confirmed the correct person has reported the loss

If you (the examiner) receive an application to replace a lost or stolen child passport, you must check if the LSR team has already cancelled the passport. You can accept an old passport has been reported missing and cancelled correctly, if the passport record has a lost and stolen record (known as a LS record).

You must associate the correct LS record (in line with examiner guidance).

Before you issue a new passport, you must make sure you have consent from someone with parental responsibility, legal guardianship or acting in place of a parent.

When examiners can cancel a child’s lost or stolen passport

If a customer reports a child passport as lost or stolen on a replacement passport application, you, the examiner dealing with a replacement passport application must only cancel the passport, if it:

• is still valid and we have confirmation from:
  • the person who gave parental consent on the original application
  • a court order telling us to cancel the passport
  • the person who has been given parental responsibility (PR) by a court order that also removed PR from the parent who applied for the original passport
• expired and anyone with parental responsibility, legal guardianship or acting in place of a parent, reports it lost or stolen

We must make sure we safeguard (protect) the child.

We will only replace a child passport, if we have consent from a person who:

• has PR
• has legal guardianship
• is acting in place of a parent and has PR or legal guardianship
• holds a court order

The person who has given consent can:

• have PR or legal guardianship
• be acting in place of a parent with PR or legal guardianship
• hold a court order
• have some (or all) of these

You, the examiner, must make sure you have the correct consent before you take action to cancel or replace a passport, as the consent we need to cancel a passport and issue another, may be different.

If you ask for extra consent (for example, from the person who signed the declaration on the last application) you must check the consent is genuine.

How an examiner cancels a child’s passport

If a customer has not reported a child passport as lost or stolen on GOV.UK, they can report it when they apply for a replacement passport. You (the examiner) must:

1. Check the child’s passport history and identify the lost or stolen passport.
2. Confirm the child’s identity.
3. Check if the passport is valid, already cancelled by the LSR team or expired.
4. Check case notes, document scans and the image of the previous application to identify who gave consent for the passport (if it is still valid) and:
   • check if the person replacing the passport is the same person who consented to the missing passport
   • ask the customer to send us written confirmation from the person who gave consent for the missing passport (if this is a different person)
   • check the consent is genuine when we receive it
5. Create an LS record when you have confirmation the passport is missing (if the LSR team has not already cancelled it).

When the child’s missing passport is still valid

You must not create an LS record for a valid child passport, unless the person who gave us parental consent for the passport reports the loss. You must ask for written confirmation from the person who gave consent (if it’s a different person than the one applying to replace it).

If the original customer is not available, you must ask the person applying, for:

• a death certificate (if they died)
• a court order authorising us to cancel the old passport and issue a new one (if they are not available)

When the child’s missing passport has already expired

If a child passport has expired, anyone with parental responsibility, legal guardianship or acting in place of a parent, can report the passport as lost or stolen.

You, the examiner, must create an LS record for the passport if it does not already have one.

Parental disputes: child’s passport is lost or stolen

You must refer the application to your operational team leader (OTL) for advice, if:

• there is a dispute between the people who have parental responsibility or legal guardianship (for example, if a parent falsely reports the expired passport as lost but knows the other parent has it)
• the person who needs to give consent has been violent or abusive toward the child (or their parent or guardian)
• there is a court order in place that may affect your decision to cancel the passport and issue a replacement

You, the OTL, must:

• review the customer’s application and their dispute
• give the customer advice in a clear and sensitive way
• not offer to mediate or contact the other parent

You must explain to the customer:

• that we do not get involved in cases of parental dispute, unless the dispute is a result of an error we made
• how they can resolve the problem (for example, by getting a specific issue order from a family court)

How to examine applications to replace missing passports

This section tells HM Passport Office examining staff how to examine an application to replace a lost or stolen passport for an adult or child. These are known as LSR applications.

You, the examiner, must examine the customer’s application to replace a lost, stolen or recovered passport, before issuing them a new passport. You must consider:

• the reasons for the loss, for example, is the passport:
  • permanently lost or unlikely to be found?
  • impounded by the police or other government agency
• if a passport has been lost in a crisis situation and if we issued extra guidance as a result

You must contact the customer and ask for more information, if you need:

• extra documents
• consent to authorise a new passport or cancel the old one (for example, for a child application)
• to clear any differences between our records and the application

In addition to the identity, nationality and entitlement checks, you must make on any other application type, you must:

1. Confirm the customer’s identity from our records.
2. Make sure the reasons for the loss are reasonable and you do not need to do more checks.
3. Check you have permission to cancel a child passport from the person who originally consented.
4. Check if the customer has reported multiple passports as lost or stolen.
5. Find or create an LS record for the missing passport.
6. Associate an LS record to the current application.
7. Cancel the missing passport on Main Index (MI) (by passing the LS record, and make sure the LS record is associated with the correct passport (if the customer has a record of more than 1 passport on MI)).
8. Tell the customer we have cancelled their missing passport.

If the police or court has the customer’s passport

If a customer tells us their previous passport was taken or kept by the police, a government department or in the UK courts (or overseas), you must refer the case to the Counter Fraud team (CFT). CFT will investigate and add the customer’s details to the watchlist if they need to.

Confirming identity on a replacement application

You must confirm the customer’s identity before issuing a replacement passport by:

• checking our records for the customer’s previous passports
• comparing their application details and photo to the details and photo on the passport record
• examining the digital referee (digital referees must be examined, if they are provided, on all applications, including where the customer can be identified from our records)
• examining the countersignatory , if:
  • you are unable to confidently identify the customer
  • we have a record of the customer’s previous passport but no photo
  • the photo is not clear
  • you cannot get the passport application file (PAF) file

If we have no record of the customer’s machine readable passport or their passport is an Old Blue (hardback style), you must deal with it as a first time application. You must ask the customer for supporting documents and a countersignatory or digital referee. They may also need to attend an interview.

How to check a customer’s personal details

If a customer applies to replace a passport, they have declared lost or stolen, you must check their personal details and photo against what we have in our passport records. For example, on:

• Main Index (MI)
• G-search (passport records held by Foreign, Commonwealth & Development Office)
• X Drive (index of historic non-digital passport records)
• the Hong Kong (HK) historic application database

You must look at the customer’s full passport history, to check:

• their identity is the same in all passports
• for any changes of name
• if they hold more than 1 valid passport (to make sure you cancel the correct passport)
• how many passports the customer has reported lost or stolen in the last 10 years

To check the customer’s identity is consistent and how many passports they have reported as lost or stolen, you must:

1. Search MI, G-search or X Drive (and the HK database if they hold British national overseas citizenship) for their full passport history.
2. Check the details with the customer (if you cannot find a record) and fill in a manual index search if you need to.
3. Compare the name, date and place of birth on the passport records with those on the application.
4. Compare the photos held in our records against the current application.
5. Investigate any differences (for example, if they had a change of name or have changed their place of birth) and ask for evidence to resolve any differences.
6. Make sure you record the correct missing passport number on the current application and the customer’s previous photo shows on the screen, allowing facial matching checks to complete.

How to deal with countersignatories and digital referees

When a customer applies to replace a lost or stolen passport, the guidance notes on GOV.UK asks them to fully fill in their application and have a countersignatory sign the form or provide a digital referee.

You must deal with the digital referee’s responses using the digital referee guidance, even if you can identify the customer from our records.

If we receive an application that does not have a countersignatory or digital referee, but you can identify the customer from their photo on MI, G-search or Passport Application File (PAF) record, you must:

• accept the photo
• continue to examine the application

If you cannot identify the customer from our records and the application does not have a countersignatory or digital referee, you must ask for one. When you get a digital referee or new form with a countersignatory, you must examine them.

If you have concerns about a customer’s identity

If you have concerns about the identity of a customer or it’s clear they’re a different person from the one in our records and there are additional risk indicators, you must:

1. Check the passport record for all passports connected to their identity on MI.
2. Add a case note with details of each passport.
3. Complete:
   • the EAC referral form and pass the AMS application to an Enhanced Application Checking (EAC) examiner
   • additional checks on the Digital Application Processing (DAP) application in line with guidance

How to case note a replacement application

You must case note all checks and decisions you make when you examine an application on AMS. You must case note the actions you took to confirm the customer’s:

• passport history
• identity

You must record all passports you find for the customer on MI or G-search in your case note.

Below are some examples of case notes for an application to replace a lost or stolen passport:

“MI wild card search and G-search search completed using [forename] and [surname]”

“Ppt [insert number] issued [insert date] declared lost on L [record number] associated to application”

“MI history shows: Prev ppt [insert passport number] issued [insert date] - ADA – photo ID confirmed

“G-search history shows: Prev ppt [insert passport number] issued [insert date] – ADA – no photo ID - 1st ppt”

“T158 ltr sent as per guidance”

How to deal with lost and stolen records

This section tells HM Passport Office staff how they can associate (attach) or disassociate (detach) a lost and stolen record (LS record) on a live application, deal with failed LS records, create a LS record, cancel a lost or stolen passport and avoid cancelling a passport in error.

You can only issue a replacement for a lost or stolen passport if you electronically attach the customer’s lost and stolen record (LS record) to the current passport application. A passed LS record will cancel the customer’s old passport in Main Index (MI).

We encourage customers to report a lost or stolen passport on GOV.UK, before they apply for a replacement passport. When you deal with a replacement passport application on the Application Management System (AMS) you must:

1. Check if AMS has already associated an LS record to the customer’s application and check the LS record is for the same customer.
2. Check the Lost and stolen and recovered (LSR) database for an existing LS record matching the application details (if one is not already associated) and associate the correct record to the application you are working on.
3. Check the status of the customer’s LS record is ‘passed’. If not you must:
   • complete the record if the status shows ‘queried’ or ‘verified’
   • disassociate the record if the status shows ‘failed’
4. Create an LS record using the details on the application, if the customer has not reported the missing passport on GOV.UK and a passed LS record does not exist.

When you’re sure you have the customer’s passed LS record attached to their application, you can:

• continue to examine the current application
• issue a replacement passport

Associating and disassociating an existing LS record on AMS

Customers who report their passport as lost on GOV.UK will have an LS record created and passed, if the details agree with a passport in our records.

A passed (completed) LS record will cancel a customer’s passport on MI. If we already have a passed record on the LS database for the lost or stolen passport, you must associate that record with the application you are examining.

If the Application Management System (AMS) can match a customer’s application to an LS record, it will automatically associate it to the application. If it associates an LS record, the application will show a Disassociate LS button on the right-hand side of the examination screen.

You must:

• compare the details of the customer on the LS record with the one on the application
• check you have associated the passed LS record with the application:
  • if an incorrect record is associated to the application, you must disassociate the record and search for the correct one

If an Associate LS button shows on the right-hand side of the examination screen, it means there is no LS record linked to the application record. To associate the record, you must:

1. Click the Associate button (the LSR search screen will show).
2. Search for the correct LS record.
3. Highlight the record you want to associate with the application.
4. Select LS button.

You must do more investigation if the LS record shows as:

If no LS record exists, you must create one.

How to deal with Query or Verified LS records

If there is an existing LS record for the passport with the status ‘Query’ or ‘Verified’ (awaiting action), you must:

1. Investigate the case notes to find out why the LSR team did not complete the record.
2. Resolve the issue (if you can).
3. Authenticate the LS record.

The LS record will now show against the passport record on MI.

If you find a failed LS record

If you find a failed LS record, you must check the case notes to find out why the record failed.

You must start the process again and:

1. Create a new LS record.
2. Authenticate the new LS record.
3. Associate the new LS record to the passport record on MI.

How to link the correct record to a passport

When a customer reports their passport missing on GOV.UK, we check MI records. Teleperformance (TP), who deal with straightforward LS notifications, do not have access to G-search records. That means, if the customer’s most recent passport record is on G-search, TP may incorrectly cancel the customer’s old passport record.

You, the examiner, must check that TP has cancelled the correct passport. If the customer does not know their missing passport number, you must check G-search. For example, if the customer:

• tells you they had a passport issued overseas
• applies from overseas
• was born overseas

If you discover the customer has another passport on G-search, you must contact them to confirm their passport was lost or stolen. You must:

1. Add the G-search record to MI.
2. Create a new LS record (using the information from the LS record) and link it to the current application.
3. Make an LS note explaining what has happened, cross referencing the other passport and LS record.
   • you do not need to send the customer AMS system letter text 158

How to search for an existing LS record on AMS

You can search for an existing lost and stolen (LS) record on the Application Management System (AMS) by:

• name and date of birth
• LS record status (for example, ‘Awaiting Verification’)

Searching LS records by name or date of birth

To search for an lost and stolen (LS) record, you must use the Lost, stolen and recovered (LSR) search screen on AMS and case note the details of any wildcard search you do. To search the LS database, you must:

1. Click LSR Search from the Go to menu in the Global Toolbar.
2. Click LS from the drop-down menu.
3. Type the customer’s surname and forename (this will find the LS records in that name combination, including incomplete ones)
4. Click Search to run the check and show the results.
5. If you need to narrow the search, enter the customer’s:
   • surname, forename and date of birth
   • old passport number
   • old application number
6. Click on the LS record that matches the information the customer has given us. AMS will automatically open the matching LS record if there is only 1 match. If there’s more than 1 match, all the results will show in the lower part of the screen. You must select the correct record associated with the customer’s missing passport.
7. Incomplete LS records (and those sent from posts abroad) often have missing information (such as the customer’s date of birth). If you suspect there are differences in the customer’s details, you must do a wildcard search. If you do not know the customer’s exact date of birth, you must search using a range of dates in the From and To fields.

How to search LS records by status

Lost and stolen (LS) records can be at different stages of completeness, also known as status (for example, ‘Awaiting Verification’ and ‘Verified’). To search for a record by status, you must:

1. Click LSR Search from the Go to menu in the Global Toolbar.
2. Click on LS from the drop-down menu in the Type box.
3. Click on the correct status from the drop-down menu in the Status box.
4. Click on Search.

All records matching the search criteria will show in the lower part of the screen.

Click on the record that matches the customer’s details.

How to create an LS record on AMS

If the customer did not report their passport missing on GOV.UK or the LSR team did not pass the record, you must create a new one using the details on the application form or by contacting the customer for more information.

We must have a record of the customer’s passport on our historical passport record (known as Main Index (MI)), before you can associate a lost or stolen (LS) record to it and cancel the passport.

If a passport record is not on MI, you must check if you must add it, before you create an LS record and deal with the customer’s application. For example, the missing passport may have been issued abroad and does not currently show on MI.

You must make sure you create the LS record to cancel the correct passport and decide if the customer:

• has reported a passport that is not showing on MI
• holds multiple British nationalities
• is a frequent traveller and holds multiple valid passports
• holds a Diplomatic or Official passport

If you are unsure which passport the customer has declared lost or stolen, you must ask them for more information.

What information you need to complete an LS record

Before you create a lost or stolen (LS) record, you must have the correct information. If you do not have it, you must contact the customer and ask for it. You will need:

• the customer’s missing passport number
• the customer’s:
• title
• full name
• date of birth
• town of birth
• country of birth
• phone number
• to know where the missing passport was issued (place of issue)
• to know the reason for cancelling the passport (for example, was it lost, stolen, or is there another reason it is missing)
• consent to cancel the missing passport from an adult passport holder (the representative) or the parent or guardian who gave parental consent for a missing child passport

If the application is to replace a child passport and another parent (or guardian with parental responsibility) declared it lost or stolen) you will also need to check if you need extra consent to cancel the missing passport

Checks you need to do before creating an LS record

Before you create a lost or stolen (LS) record, you must:

1. Make sure you have all the information you need to create an LS record.
2. Phone (or write) to the customer if you need more information to complete the record.
3. Search MI to check if there’s a record relating to the lost or stolen passport.
4. Compare the record details on MI with the application details to confirm it’s the correct passport record and check the:
   • issue date
   • passport notes
   • cancellation date
   • cancellation reason
5. Check if we issued another passport (after it was cancelled) on MI and investigate why another one was issued (for example, was the identity hijacked or does the customer hold multiple passports).

If you cannot find a matching record, you must contact the customer by phone or letter and ask:

• if they were ever known by any other name
• the date we issued their passport
• where the passport was issued (for example, was it issued abroad)

You must search Main Index again with the details the customer has given you. If the passport record is not showing on MI, you must create an LS record and add the passport to MI, before you associate the LS record.

How to create and pass an LS record

You can create an LS record in AMS in 2 places by clicking the Create LS Record in the:

• drop down menu in the Global Header toolbar (you can access this without an open application)
• links menu from the application AMS examination screen (accessed through an open application)

If you are examining a replacement application and need to create an LS record for a missing passport, you must:

1. Open the customer’s application on screen.
2. Access the Create LS Record from the links menu on the examination screen to prompt the system to take the information from the customer’s application. The system will automatically complete the data fields:
   • telephone type
   • telephone number
   • passport number
   • title
   • surname
   • forename
   • date of birth
   • town of birth
   • country of birth
   • passport issued in UK (yes or no)
   • passport cancellation reason (lost, stolen, other)
3. Check the information automatically entered by the system is correct (against the passport record) in the mandatory fields:
   • surname
   • forename
   • date of birth
   • town of birth
   • country of birth
   • passport issued in UK, using the correct radio button Yes or No
   • lost, stolen, other value
   • passport cancellation reason (for example, ‘Lost by Holder’ or ‘Stolen’)
   • date of loss
   • country of loss
4. Remove the passport number from the Passport Number field (if the system has automatically entered it).
5. Check the customer’s name on the LS record matches the name on the passport they have declared lost or stolen. The system will automatically enter the names fields by taking the information from the current application. You must check the customer’s name is correct, as it may be different from the original passport.
6. Select Yes in the Police Report section if the customer has reported their passport lost or stolen to the police (you do not need to record anything more).
7. Scan any supporting correspondence on the application record.
8. Find the correct lost or stolen passport record and attach it to the LS record you have created.
9. Authenticate the LS record to cancel the passport on MI.
10. Send a letter to the customer telling them you have cancelled their old passport.

How to attach a customer’s record to the LS record

To cancel the passport on MI, you must find the correct passport record and link it to the LS record you created to cancel the passport on MI. You must:

1. Click Find Passport from the Next Actions menu in the Create LS record.
2. Click on the Passport Number of the correct passport record in the Passport Search Results section.

When you open the customer’s record details, you must compare it to the application to confirm it’s the correct passport. If the record is not the correct one, you must:

• click Close in the Next Actions menu
• search for the correct passport record you want to cancel

How to authenticate an LS record and cancel a passport

When you have found the passport record you want to cancel, you must:

1. Click View Application from the Links menu (the screen will show details of the application record).
2. Click the Record Authentication link from the Next Action menu. The Authenticate Passport screen will display the message, ‘Please confirm this is the passport record you have authenticated against’.
3. Click Yes to open the Create Note screen.
4. Type a note to record the actions you have taken (for example, when you have checked a passport record) and click Submit to save the LS Note.
5. The system will open the Authenticate LS screen. Click on Pass Authentication from the Next Action menu - the Cancellation Passport screen will show the message, ‘Please note that once cancelled this passport cannot be re-instated. Is this the passport you wish to cancel?’
6. Click:
   • Yes - Cancel with letter if you created the LS record to cancel an old passport or are dealing with a child application
   • Yes - Cancel no letter if you associated an existing LS record created by Teleperformance or the LSR team

How to tell the customer we have cancelled their passport

If you have created an LS record and cancelled a customer’s passport on MI, you must:

• send them a letter
• tell them we have cancelled their passport
• tell them they cannot use their passport, if they find it

When you click Yes - Cancel with letter, AMS will show New AMS Letter.

You must create a letter using text 158 and print it. The letter on the screen will display: ‘Correspondence generated for (LS Reference no) status of record updated to PBE’.

You must click OK.

How to tell a customer we have cancelled an old child passport

When you issue a new passport for a child, you must:

• send a letter to the customer
• send a letter to the person who consented to the original passport (if we know their address)
• tell both parties you have cancelled the old child passport and issued a replacement

If you do not know the address of the person who originally consented (for example, because they are deceased, or the customer has a court order to cancel the passport) you do not need to send an AMS system letter.

How to cancel a passport without sending a letter

If a customer reports their passport lost or stolen on GOV.UK, we will automatically send them a text or email confirmation. You must only send them another letter if the application is to replace a lost or stolen child passport.

If you select Yes - Cancel no letter on the system, the Passed LS Record screen will display the message: ‘LS Record ………………. has been passed and associated to application number. Passport ……… has been cancelled’.

You must click OK. The application screen will display on the system.

How to stop or resolve an incorrect cancellation

To prevent cancelling a passport in error, you must check that the passport you are about to cancel is the one the customer has told us is missing. For example, you must check if the:

• customer had another passport issued after the one they reported lost or stolen
• LS record has been associated to the correct passport

You must:

• make sure the passport recorded on the AMS application page is the same passport the customer reported as lost
• make sure you do not cancel a valid passport in error (if the customer has multiple passports)
• make sure the passport declared lost shows on the application screen - you can deselect the Passport Cancel checkbox on AMS

If you cancel a passport on MI in error (for example, if an LS record is associated to the incorrect passport) it may be possible to reinstate it, if you identify it early. You must immediately refer to the: Lost and Stolen Passports Policy - Guidance for LSR team to see what you must do to correct the mistake.

How to deal with a recovered passport

This section tells HM Passport Office staff how to deal with applications to renew a passport a customer has reported lost or stolen.

Customers may report their passport lost or stolen, later find it and send it to us as part of their passport application. We cannot deal with a renewal application for a passport we have already cancelled on Main Index (MI).

If you, the examiner, receive an application with a passport the customer has reported lost or stolen, you must:

• not renew it
• check we have not already issued a passport before you authorise a replacement
• deal with the current application as a replacement (if we have not issued a passport)
• associate a correct lost and stolen (LS) record to the passport

When dealing with a recovered passport, you must consider the customer’s explanation about the recovery of their passport and:

• refer the case to the Counter Fraud team (if you suspect fraud)
• send the passport to the Peterborough LSR team (if you do not suspect fraud)

To deal with a recovered passport, you must:

1. Check the LS case notes.
2. Check MI for other passports we may have issued the customer.
3. Case note information about the recovery of the passport.
4. Check the application service type is correct and change it if you need to:
   • ask the customer for the correct passport (if we issued another passport)
   • associate the correct LS record (if you need to)
5. Examine the application using the correct service type.

You must only send the passport to the Peterborough LSR team if you do not suspect fraud.

You must send the passport to the Peterborough LSR team so they can create an R (recovered) record and update MI.

You must:

1. Explain on a telephone (TEB) search screen, how you recovered the passport and print out a copy of the screen.
2. Send the passport and the TEB search print-out to the Peterborough LSR team by internal post.
3. Add a case note to the application explaining what you have done.